In the brutal cut and thrust of the final month of the US presidential campaign, it is no surprise that Mitt Romney's wife Ann is hitting the hustings as an impassioned advocate for her husband.
But Mrs Romney is also playing a key behind-the-scenes role in resurrecting the Republican candidate's flagging White House hopes by steering a high-stakes strategy overhaul to present a "moderate Mitt", it has now emerged.
Convinced that his campaign was heading for ignominious defeat, Mrs Romney and her eldest son Tagg staged a make-or-break "family intervention" with the candidate's closest advisers just before the first presidential debate, according to leaks from within the camp.
Their message to Mr Romney and his advisers was simple -- the candidate should "be himself" and his team should let "let Mitt be Mitt".
They wanted Mr Romney to open up with more personal anecdotes in his speeches, to soften his harsh tone on social issues and to remind voters of his days as governor of Massachusetts when he struck deals with the Democrats who controlled the state legislature, most notably on health care reform.
His pivot to the centre has, since the first presidential debate 11 days ago, paid off with dramatic dividends. A candidate whose political obituaries were already being written has had a resurgence in the polls, leading nationally by more than one percentage point on the most recent average of polls on Saturday, compared with a four point defecit at the start of the month.
He has been bolstered further by a dramatic increase in support from prospective women voters as he closes a once-yawning gender gap with Barack Obama. » | Philip Sherwell, New York | Saturday, October 13, 2012
